Blackbaud in the News: You Don't Have To Send Holiday Greetings to Everyone

Melissa Dodge — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 18:26:00 GMT

From The Nonprofit Times

You Don't Have to Send Holiday Greetings to Everyone
Database modeling and donor history deciding who will get holiday solicitations

by Michele Donohue, featuring Matt Cobbett, the director of cooperative database products at Target Analytics

Nonprofit direct mailers are following the Christmas carol instructions about "making a list, checking it twice" for end-of-the-year mailings. But forget about naughty or nice - these mailers want donors.

Save the Children is preparing to mail approximately 300,000 lapsed donors this coming fall, according to Gail Arcamone, director of direct response marketing at the organization's Westport, Conn. headquarters.

Arcamone said that the organization plans to mail smarter by modeling the lapsed donor list, scoring individuals based on their potential to give. So instead of mailing the entire donor file, "we can just really mail more efficiently to the donors who are most likely to respond."

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Blackbaud in the News: The Art of Donor Retention

Melanie Mathos — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 19:31:00 GMT

From The NonProfit Times

The Art of Donor Retention

By Beth Isikoff, Blackbaud’s director of national account development

When you reach out to your donors, what kind of picture are you painting? Constituent retention increasingly is, and will continue to be, a high priority for all nonprofits. The art of retention has always challenged fundraisers, who strive to stay on top of the latest and greatest strategies for keeping donors active.

Ninety-four percent of respondents to Blackbaud’s recent State of the Nonprofit Industry (SONI) survey said that retention is important, with 74% rating their performance in this area as “very good” or “good.” As retention stays top-of-mind for fundraisers, we must ask ourselves how we can continue to maintain relationships with our constituents and keep them involved with our missions. With acquisition costs on the rise, it is vital to find ways to keep the constituents you have worked so hard to get. The amount of time and money that goes into acquisition planning, production, and list management is monumental for many. It is indeed painful to watch acquisition investments dwindle because constituents do not renew or fail to engage further with you after their first gift.

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Blackbaud News : The NonProfit Times

Blackbaud in the News: You Don't Have To Send Holiday Greetings to Everyone

Blackbaud in the News: The Art of Donor Retention